The French government has postponed a long-held target to reduce the share of nuclear energy in the country’s power production after grid operator RTE warned it risked supply shortages after 2020 and could miss a goal to curb carbon emissions. Environment Minister Nicolas Hulot said on Tuesday it was not realistic to cut nuclear energy’s share of electricity production to 50 percent by 2025 from 75 percent now and that doing so in a hurry would increase France’s CO2 emissions, endanger the security of power supply and put jobs at risk. “It will be difficult to maintain the target of reducing the share of nuclear to 50 percent by 2025,” Hulot told reporters following a cabinet meeting.
Reuters 7th Nov 2017 read more »
The French government will come up with a more “realistic” target to reduce the share of nuclear energy in the country’s electricity generation, Environment Minister Nicolas Hulot told a news conference in Paris today. The previous government of Francois Hollande in 2015 established an energy transition law which set a target of reducing the share of nuclear in the power mix to 50% by 2025 from the current 75%. Hulot told reporters today that this is not realistic, but he did not set a new deadline.
World Nuclear News 7th Nov 2017 read more »
France’s environment minister is backing down on promises to sharply reduce nuclear power production so that the government can concentrate on reducing fossil fuels instead.
News Tribune 7th Nov 2017 read more »
Exceptional electricity restriction measures could be taken this winter. Will there be heating at Christmas? The manager of the RTE electricity network warned Tuesday, November 7 that he may be led to take “exceptional” measures that may go to scheduled cuts this winter to provide food for French households. Unplanned plant shutdowns or unusual weather conditions “could weaken the French power supply” during the coldest months, RTE says in its forecast. The security of electricity supply in the country is particularly sensitive in winter, because of the large share of electricity in the heating of the French.
France Info 7th Nov 2017 read more »
The site Areva NP, formerly FBFC, in Romans, which manufactures fuel for nuclear reactors, was evacuated temporarily this Tuesday morning following an alert. A truck activated the detection system at the entrance of the site because of the trace of a suspect substance. A security perimeter was set up on Tuesday morning at the entrance to the site Areva NP Romans, because of a suspicious substance detected in the cabin of a truck that was to enter the enclosure of this sensitive site producing fuel for nuclear reactors. Like all the vehicles entering, the vehicle was checked upon arrival around 10 am and the detection system wasep, revealing a trace of suspicious material. Immediately the PPI (Plan Particulier d’Intervention) was triggered.
France Bleu 7th Nov 2017 read more »
